anton.liebscher

Last time I looked at excursions it looked like PandO only give an hour to do Pisa on own. Someone please tell me this is wrong. We have seen the tower etc and want to go into the town and by the river. If an hour is correct we will cancel.

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Thanks everyone for your comments regarding excursions to Florence/Pisa.Kevinyork, tried your suggestion of cruisingexcursions.com, but they were more expensive than P and O. So, having taken everyone's advice,we have booked on the ship excursion, and appreciate the help we have been given.

We did ship excursion to Florence and Pisa with Thompson and it was excellent. Will be doing Pisa on own with P and O beginning September. Pisa was superb but deserves its own slot and plan to go beyond tower this time.

Glad you asked the question kittyonions and great so many people offered their experience. My thanks also to all who answered. We are also doing Dubrovnik on our own and this has helped with all my concerns.

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Keep the tux for the Captains Gala night (or whatever they are going to call it), the one where the captain gives a speech, and there is free fizz, that is the most formal night. It is usually (but not always) the first formal night. The other formal nights get progressively less formal as the cruise goes on. It is very rare for formal nights to be held on port days, they are nearly always on sea days to give plenty time to get ready [emoji4].

Sounds ok. Many thanks for taking the trouble to fill me in.

 

 

 

No just formal nights. Other nights are smart casual. No shorts, t shirts or obvious trainers (ie brightly coloured ot logos).

 

Chinos, smart dark jeans, collared shirt or polo shirt will be fine for those.

 

Actually a dinner suit is not required for formal nights, you will get away with collar and tie, plus jacket, lounge suit or business suit will suffice.

That sounds great. I always go smart casual for dinner and don't mind wearing a suit or tux now and then. Shorts in MDR is not for me and loud T-shirts are for daytime.

Sorry to disappoint you but freedom dining, if you wish to eat I the dining room, has the same dress code as the 'traditional' fixed dining room.

So you are telling me I have to wear a dinner suit every night?

I think I will just unsubscribe from this futile discussion. At the end of the day, if I am sick of a conversation I don't have to partake. Apologies to brynmelyndavid if I have offended you, just don't like dgs1956's tone. Conversation over from my point of view.

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Agreed. It astounds me that some people want every cruise line to be the same.

I chose my P&O cruise by itinerary and because it fits a friends business requirements not because I want to run around pretending to be an old colonial. Formality is fine now and then but potentially having four formal nights in a fortnight cruise was not in the literature I saw. However I was not complaining about it just saying that I find RCI's approach more appealing and will vote with my feet if I can get the same itinerary without stuffing my shirt.

...and thank goodness for freedom dining[emoji38].

Just done Princess - NO, not less formal.

Ah well, perhaps back to RC next time. Thank you for heads up, davenew.[emoji145]

We ate in Jamie's on Anthem and it was good. Watch your menu choices as it can become a little heavy due to generous portions.

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We have only cruised twice, once on The Thomson Dream and once on the Anthem. We had one formal night on each and enjoyed that with an additional suited night on the Anthem at the Chef's Table. I think a shirt trouser dress code for dinner is great but am sceptical about a potential 4 formal nights on Oceana in September. Looking forward to a little less formality with Princess in March.

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We're currently quite underwhelmed by Mount Etna but that's not P & O's fault and our cabin balcony is on the sunny mainland side anyway, so enjoying a nice seat and room service in the sun!

Volcanoes are best when they are smoking. Suspect the underwhelming view is better in your position.

We are on the Venice to Genoa leg right now, and it's all very good. If agree with everything in the review saving for that we've not tried the entertainment as the kids prefer a more leisurely evening.

Good. I trust you will continue to have a great time and thank you for feedback.

This was my first cruise with my boyfriend after cruising many times (on P&O, Celebrity and Royal Caribbean) with my family. He was a little dubious, but I convinced him and I have a feeling he will never look back!

 

 

 

Flights and Embarkation/Disembarkation:

 

I have never had such a smooth process. We were sat in the departure lounge at Gatwick airport within 30mins of arrival; there was no queue for the check-in desk or security. We arrived in Venice and had to collect our bags (as this was a scheduled rather than a charter flight), but only walked about 10 steps through the arrivals gate when our luggage was taken by porters for us to see it again at the cabin! After a short transfer and no queue at the check-in, we were onboard within an hour of arriving in Venice.

 

 

 

Similarly, on the journey home our bags were taken from our rooms at 11pm and we saw them again at Gatwick. With flights at 12:45, we were initially surprised at our transfer from the ship being at 11:00, however once we arrived at the airport (Genoa) we realised that it would not be an issue. We had received boarding cards whilst still on board the ship, and there was a P&O only queue at security, meaning a very quick process yet again! Hugely impressed.

 

 

 

Cabin:

 

Booked a guaranteed inside cabin, allocated A316, very far forward but cabins above and beneath so very quiet. Ideal location, rarely needed to use the lifts. Marx our cabin steward was a star.

 

 

 

Dining:

 

We were allocated 8:30 club dining, what we had hoped for, and were seated with two other (lovely) couples in the Adriatic restaurant. The food was great, lots of different choices and well presented. We never had an issue with taste or cooking of the food. We weren't expecting 5* star cuisine so it lived up to our expectations.

 

 

 

We also ate in the Beach House one night. Unfortunately it was raining so we had to eat inside. It was nice to eat something different, however we felt the food in the MDR was better quality.

 

 

 

Entertainment:

 

The Headliners were outstanding in all the shows we saw. Very impressed, as I have been disappointed by the main production company on other lines. Other acts included:

 

The Octaves - average, but often out of tune and tried to crack unfunny jokes.

 

Illusionist (can't remember the name) - very good, professional and engaging show.

 

 

 

The entertainment team (headed by Liam Jay) were engaged and seemed to enjoy their roles. We found the party sailaways hilarious - but can see they certainly wouldn't be for everyone. It was always indicated that if you preferred a quiet spot to choose the other pool.

 

 

 

The band Next Step were good, when performing. However on more than one occasion they spent over 30mins sound checking, very loudly, through the sound system - highly irritating.

 

 

 

Do feel the other acts could be improved.

 

 

 

Itinerary:

 

I have actually sailed this cruise before, on Ventura, and returned because I enjoyed the ports so much. We didn't do any ship excursions, just explored on our own. The highlight was Kotor. Make sure you are on deck to watch the sailaway, it is honestly one of the most amazing things I have experienced. We paid the €3 to climb the 1,350 steps to the Fortress overlooking the valley, if you are reasonably fit you should be able to do it. It took us about 45mins to get up and the views are sublime. Other ports were Corfu, Civitavecchia and Ajaccio.

 

 

 

Overall:

 

We felt we got what we paid for, and a little more! If I had to fault I would agree that the ship will benefit from a refit, and perhaps the staff in some places could have been a little more friendly.

 

 

 

Loved the holiday. Will definitely sail P&O again.

Nice to read your review. We are first time on P&O going from Genoa to Venice and back in September. Looks an amazing itinerary.

many thanks for useful info :)

thank you, will look out for these

You would probably get better help if you post this on the Spain Ports of Call Board http://boards.cruisecritic.com/forumdisplay.php?f=596

 

It would also be helpful to list which actual islands you are visiting.

 

You can also search for the specific port on the Spain Board or on Trip Advisor which often has even better advice for how to get from the ports to a beach as there are usually locals posting on there

thank you - could not find my way there through tapatalk - now using web browser:)

Can't speak for Stitchman but we are doing Gran Canaria, Tenerife and Lanzarote. 2nd Cruise. Went with Thomson 1st time. They were helpful about ports. RC seem to have info on excursions not destination.

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Curious how close anything is. We are going on the Anthem in October.

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